I Hurt Myself and Stayed on the Weight Loss Track!

“Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm” – Winston Churchill

I woke up and limped to the almighty scale.   I need help, not walking but I’ve hurt myself and I need to stay on the weight loss track.  I’m so afraid this leg pain is going to cost me my hard-earned weight loss motivation.

Why am I limping?  I’m limping because I’m a type-A, overachieving, super freak! Every time I start to work out consistently and see results, my type-A overachieving persona takes over and I do something completely over the top.  Before I know it, I  get hurt which completely sabotages my weight loss efforts!

Exercise Problems

Squats have been a problem for me since my 20’s.  No matter how much I concentrate on form or how many personal trainers or physical therapists I have work with me, I end up hurting my knees.  Over the past few months, I have been able to get away with twelve ballet squats per workout.  Yesterday, motivated by the small results I’m starting to see and my playlist, I decided to go for 60 squats with some weights on my shoulders.  What was I thinking?

History Repeats Itself

I started running a few years ago, and thoroughly enjoyed the runners high from my one-mile run/ walk, so I whimsically signed up for a 5K Thanksgiving Turkey Trot.  I did realize that normal people train for things like this, but why would I let that hold me back?  The route was completely cross country with a rocky trail and uneven ground. Hours later after the run, I bent over to take the Thanksgiving turkey out of the oven and couldn’t get back up! Let’s just say my husband was less than thrilled that I invited thirty of our closest family members over for dinner and spent the entire day on the couch grimacing in pain.

Time to Learn To Exercise in Moderation

I’ve had more fiascos like this than I can count.  Since my personality is so all or nothing, my typical response to a self-afflicted work out injury is, screw it since I’m off track I might as well eat and drink everything and anything I can get my hands on.  This super freak isn’t going down this time!

And Now It’s Time To Contend With The Scale

But back to today, I stepped on the scale this morning to find that it was stuck on the same weight as yesterday.  Ugh.  I knew this was coming! We all see all those motivational signs about abs being made in the kitchen and 80/20 or 70/30.  As for me and my body, I need to move in order for the scale to move.  I get the best results when I walk (not run) for a consistent hour every day.  And that is just not happening right now since I can’t stand for over 5 minutes without feeling shooting pains up my spine- ugh.

How I Hurt Myself and Stayed on the Weight Loss Track!

How I Hurt Myself and Stayed on the Weight Loss Track

I decided I had worked too hard to lose the weight this time and there was absolutely no way I was going to gain it back.  And I have to tell you, I’ve been down and out with back, neck, and arm pain for over a month and am rocking my weight loss goals!

Here are 3 of Simple Ways I stayed on the Weight Loss Track

1. Focussed on my diet and ate even healthier than usual which was somewhat easy since I was doing the Whole30 during a good portion of the time
2. Scheduled and enjoyed every second of self-care I could treat myself too.  For me, this meant a lot of Epsom salt baths, infrared sauna sessions, and a few craniosacral massages.
3. Reset my goals so that I was only accountable for things I could control.   And I even took going to the gym out of my calendar (for now).  Looking at it every day and feeling like a failure because I didn’t go was bad for my moral so I gave myself a break.

 

So, in the end, my back still hurts and I may not be able to lift my right arm but I am down 6 pounds.  And this time, I can officially say even though I hurt myself, I stayed on the weight loss track.  There’s always a bright side:)

How do you stay on track with exercise when you have an injury?  What exercise does your body respond best to?

How I Hurt Myself and Stayed on the Weight Loss Track!

Let’s Tackle the Weight Loss Villian!

“You must learn to let go. Release the stress. You were never in control anyway.” ― Steve Maraboli

I awoke and was quickly confronted by the almighty scale.  Before I stepped on, I made a quick weight loss confession.  I ate dinner after 7 pm last night. I know that’s a diet no, no but it wasn’t really my fault.  Last night was date night and we had to cart the kids around first, so we didn’t even get out of the house until after 7:00 pm.  I think the almighty scale should give me a pass on this one.  And give me credit for eating grilled chicken and avocado on lettuce for dinner and walking over an hour in 90-degree weather.

Fingers crossed…..My weight was down .6 from yesterday.  I’ll take it.  Thank you!

Inspired by my small weight loss from yesterday, I sit at my computer hoping I am ready to tackle the weight loss villain I told you about in “Why Haven’t I Lost Weight“.  Have you ever heard of Cortisol?  Has she been a problem for you?

A few definitions for cortisol

Merriam- Webster defines cortisol as a glucocorticoid C21 H30 O5 produced by the adrenal cortex upon stimulation by ACTH that mediates various metabolic processes (such as gluconeogenesis), has anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive properties, and whole levels in the blood may become elevated in response to physical or psychological stress.

In case that sounds like a foreign language to you, I’ll give you my not so medical or technical definition of cortisol.  Cortisol is a steroid hormone known as the stress hormone and is produced by the adrenal glands when we feel physically or mentally stressed or threatened.  It hinders weight loss because cortisol is associated with insulin resistance, carbohydrate cravings, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, and fat deposits on the face, neck, and belly.

And an even simpler definition of cortisol would be to call the ultimate diet and weight loss buster, at least according to me and my weight loss journey.

A supplement that helped many of my cortisol issues

A little over a year ago I sought help from a brilliant holistic doctor,  Dr. Rudy Byron who recognized my issues with cortisol and suggested a supplement called AdreneVive.  AdreneVive is a combination of:

• Ashwagandha root extract
• Skullcap root extract,
• Eleuthero root extract,
• Rhodiola Rosea root extract,
• l theanine,
• Phosphatidylserine

AdreneVive pretty much changed my life.  I can now make it through a day without taking a nap, my energy is more even throughout the day, and I even lost a few pounds!

* Even though I had tremendous success with AdreneVive, you’ll want to be sure to consult with your physician before starting it.

Even with the AdreneVive, I can literally feel my cortisol surging throughout the day.  Do you ever feel your cortisol surge? I will set out to do something non-stressful like writing a blog or cleaning out my email inbox and within minutes my body and mind rev up and my inner super freak surfaces.  Within seconds, I start trying to complete the task better and faster.  My mind goes into overdrive and sometimes I forget to breathe!  I feel like I need some help with this.  I’m envisioning little drops that I can put in my water to help me tone it down a notch every time I start to rev up.  I scheduled an appointment with Dr. Byron and cannot wait to hear what he recommends.

Wondering if cortisol is affecting your weight loss efforts?  You may enjoy this read this article by Mind Body Green.

 

Cortisol

 

Why Haven’t I Lost Weight?

 

Today I awoke baffled and began reflecting on two blogs I wrote a few days ago titled Why and the Pursuit of Ketosis- Day 4.  After reading those blogs, my inner Sales Manager would have hired me for the position of Successful Dieter in a New York Minute.  So, why haven’t I lost all the weight?

I quickly decided that there must be more to this weight loss journey than just eating a specific number of calories daily, exercising, and weighing myself.  Hmmm.  Exasperated by this sixteen-year journey, nothing came to mind.

I thought to myself, “What question would I ask if I was interviewing a potential new hire? I know, I would ask them to walk me through the times in their life when they had gained substantial weight”.

The Freshmen 32:

Well,  there was this one time in college……  I walked into my Dad’s house expecting to go for a bike ride or breakfast.  Instead, he was standing very firmly at the top of the stairs.

“You are going to break up with that guy today,” he said.

I had been dating my high school-turned-college boyfriend for well over three years when my Dad caught wind that he had done something most Dad’s wouldn’t approve of.

Within a second we were in a standoff.  My Dad’s forehead was so red and veins I didn’t know he had were popping out of his head.  And then he calmly said, “If you continue to so much as talk to him, you will not see another dime of my money and that means no college tuition.”

A week later the letter saying my college tuition hadn’t been paid came in the mail.  I had days to come up with the money or I would need to withdraw from the semester!

I made an appointment with the financial aid office.  Being the only child of a man who had the means to easily pay my tuition,  didn’t help my case with the financial aid office.  Luckily the financial aid counselor had a big heart and found a way to help me out with a fraction of my tuition.

Within days I had three jobs.  I had already committed to rushing a sorority and continued full throttle with that only missing one rush event. And as for my grades, 15 credits and just shy of a 4.0.

Ask me about my weight – I gained 32 pounds in one semester!

And The A Word That Took My Weight Loss Efforts Down:

Autism rolled into my life like a hurricane.  Within a few days, my healthy Son looked so sickly, had a huge distended stomach, didn’t poop for days, and lost speech. To make matters worse, he didn’t sleep for more than two hours at a time, had extreme sensory issues, and the impulsive and aggressive behavior was dangerous and scary..  Everywhere I went, I felt like people were judging my parenting skills.  And to make matters worse, my husband and I were not seeing eye to eye on our parenting approaches.  I have never been so stressed out in my entire life.

I gained 60 pounds in less than a year and a half!

And This One Time When I Had “Balance” In My Life:

And then there was this one time about a year and a half ago,  my life was, dare I say, in balance.  I walked an hour a day, made it to my yoga mat at least twice a week, lifted weights 2-3 times a week,  journaled about 1500 calories a day on myfitnesspal and dropped substantial unwanted pounds.

Then, I accepted a job I thought sounded fun and easy enough.  I would be working for a great company and with a dynamic team.  The position itself wasn’t stressful but there were always a lot of balls in the air,  and a demanding travel and social schedule.  I enjoyed the position but it definitely threw my family out of balance and life at home got really chaotic.

Ask me how many pounds I gained in less than 4 months – 37!

There is a common theme in all of these situations and I’m sure she is part of the root cause of my weight gain setbacks in my weight loss journey.  and the likely reason why I haven’t lost all the weight.  I’ll introduce you to her in my next blog,  but be prepared, I’m next to positive you won’t like her one bit.

Weight Loss Help

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The Cortisol Reduction Plan!

 

 

After re-reading yesterday’s blog Let’s Tackle the Weight Loss Villain,  I excitedly reached out to Byron Health and Healing to schedule an appointment.   I couldn’t wait to talk to Dr. Byron about lowering my cortisol levels.  As it turns out,  Dr. B was on vacation.  Great for him and not so good for me or my cortisol levels.

Patience is not one of my virtues, so I put my enthusiasm into researching a cortisol reduction plan of my own.  I came across a great article you may enjoy by Dr. Axe, 6 Steps to Get Your Cortisol Levels Under Control and Turn Down Stress.

In the article Dr. Axe lists the following six steps to manage cortisol levels:

1. Switch to whole foods and an anti-inflammatory diet -Since I have recently done several rounds of the Whole30 and eat Whole30ish when I’m not on round, I should be solid.
2. Reduce and manage stress – Why does everyone want us to manage our stress?  This one is probably the hardest for me but I’m going to give myself credit because I’ve been doing a great job of meditating on a regular basis.
3. Exercise regularly – Check.
4. Use adaptogen herbs and superfoods –  I have been taking Cortisol Manager and it seems to be helping, but I can’t help but wonder if I should be taking more?  I guess this is a question for Dr. B. 
5. Try essential oils to promote relaxation – I honestly think I was the last person to get on the essential oil bandwagon but I have been diffusing lavender essential oil at night and it seems to help quite a bit with relaxation.
6. Get enough sleep – Done.  I love to sleep.

Since I was able to check off the items on Dr. Axe’s steps to get your cortisol levels under control, but feel like I still need a little more help brining down my cortisol level, I did more research and came up with more steps.

The cortisol reduction plan:

• Get good sleep and try to turn in and wake up at the same time every day
• Be happy!
• Exercise, but not too much or too hard
• Spend time on nurturing spirituality
• Cut caffeine
• Lower sugar intake
• Take naps
• Reduce inflammation in the body
• Control blood pressure
• Learn to recognize stressful thinking
• Learn to relax
• Practice deep breathing and take lots of deep breaths
• Eat prebiotic foods
• Stay hydrated
• Eat more spinach, citrus fruits, beans and barley, omega 3 fatty acids, zinc, and dark chocolate
• Meditate or listen to relaxation tapes
• Drink tea: holy basil, green, black, or rooibos tea

You can find the list on Pinterest.

I guess I’ve come farther in this sixteen-year weight loss and wellness journey than I realized because I’m already doing the majority of the items this the cortisol reduction list too!  Of course, there are still a few things I need to work on.

Just breathe….

I decided to focus on breathing.  I know I need to pay attention to it because I forget to breathe all the time.  My Apple watch reminds me to breathe at least once or twice an hour!  I remember this tall, calm, centered, svelt friend of mine who had a tattoo on her wrist that read “breathe”.  At the time I thought it was kind of silly but now I’m thinking her tattoo is profound and maybe I need to find out where she had the work done.

It’s tea time somewhere….

Recent research published in Molecular Nutrition & Food Research showed that rooibos can significantly reduce the levels of cortisol, so I’ve decided to start drinking tea.  This is huge because I don’t drink anything besides water, bone broth, and… vodka.  I just have this gut feeling that the rooibos tea is going to help my adrenals and cortisol levels.  Wish me luck!

Naptime is a great time for cortisol levels…

And as for taking naps, if that’s what the research says I have to do to lower my cortisol levels, I guess I should at least give it a try!

 

I hope you do something to reduce your cortisol today!

Breath and Reduce Your Cortisol Levels

 

“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes…Including you.” –Anne Lamott

So Long Low Carb Diet Hello Whole30!

“Take Pride in How Far You Have Come and Have Faith in How Far You Can Go!” – Live Life Fit Calendar

I sit nervously at my desk as reality sets in.  I will be walking away from the high protein low carb moderate fat diet I have been on since March and committed myself and my daughter to start the Whole 30 on September 1^st.

I am not only nervous, I am filled with anxiety and doubt.  Am I doing the right thing? I have lost about 36 pounds since March on my current diet.  What happens if I take my foot off the high protein low carb moderate fat diet and gain it all back?  What if I invest a month in the Whole 30 and I don’t lose any weight or worse yet gain a few pounds? To make matters worse I’ve shared my story with thousands of people who will be watching me.

I decide I need to get my feelings out on paper.  Once I do that, maybe I’ll burn the paper or put the note in a bottle and throw it into the lake or something dramatic like that.  For some reason, I can all but hear Cat Stevens,  “If You Are Going to Leave Take Good Care” playing in the background.  So here goes….

 

Dear High Protein Low Carb Moderate Fat Diet,

My heart is filled with gratitude and respect for you.   I want to truly thank you for all the wonderful things you have done for me.  I’m thankful for each of the 36 pounds you helped me lose.  I’m also grateful for the way high protein diets like yours tend to help my body tone up quickly, especially since I was a hot mess when I first started you.  The switch that turned with my sleeping patterns just a few days into this diet was nothing short of miraculous and my entire family would like to thank you for that.

You are a fantastic diet.  If we were a couple, I would probably say it’s me not you.  It’s just, have you ever read the book Good to Great? The book talks about how good is the enemy of great because once things are good people don’t push themselves to achieve great”ness”.  Well, I want great. I want to get to a healthy weight and feel my healthiest ever.

There are just some things about the high protein low carb moderate fat diet that are not resonating with my body.  The gluten, dairy, and artificial sugar all cause migraines, body pain, and inflammation throughout my body.

With that in mind, I have decided to start the Whole 30 on September 1^st.

So High Protein Low Carb Moderate Fat Diet, please wish me luck.  I leave you filled with hope, optimism, and a smudge of confidence.  I have a few friends who have completed the Whole 30 and they have all said it has been completely life-changing.  As a matter of fact, they all looked like newly revised versions of themselves after they completed the Whole 30.   I’m only a few chapters into It Starts with Food and it already seems like the gains the dieters make are remarkable.

I’m hoping to be an amazing Whole 30 success story.  If not, I’ll be back on my hands and knees sometime around the first week in October.

Sincerely and Respectfully,

Tanya

 

Whole 30

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It Can Be a Hard Knock Weight Loss Journey

 

“Breathe. It’s just a bad day not a bad life” – The Love Notebook

 

I awake still tired, but I have too much to do to sleep. As I look at the almighty scale, the lyrics of a song from Annie play in my head

Yesterday was plain awful

You can say that again

Yesterday was plain awful

But that’s

Not now

That’s then

Yesterday was plain awful.  I awoke with aches and pains and they are just not something I’m used to since going gluten-free several years ago.

When I sat down at my computer to blog, I could feel my cortisol and adrenals skyrocketing and short-circuiting. My mind was going in twenty directions and I couldn’t seem to harness it or focus.  I was unable to be present and I was undeniable cantankerous.  I had been doing so well at keeping calm ever since I wrote The Cortisol Reduction Plan.  For the most part, deep breaths were keeping me in check but that wasn’t enough this morning

I had originally made hotel reservations at a resort on the beach that was ungodly expensive and had been trying to cancel it for two days, but the resorts phone line hadn’t been working properly.  When I finally got in touch with the reservationist, she told me she was going to be charging my card 900 regardless of if I made it or not. I argued and won, but the battle caused my adrenaline and cortisol to surge! What is it about stress related to money that rocks our inner cores?

My Husband was traveling for business.  Usually, I welcome his business travel because the kids and I get to do crazy things like all sleep in one bed and eat whatever we want for dinner but since it’s a few days before school starts, it’s pretty hectic around here.

I didn’t sleep well last night and was very tired.  To make matters worse, I was starving the entire day.  Do you ever notice that you tend to be hungrier when you get less sleep? I found myself shoving the chocolate covered strawberries I made the other day for the Facebook video into my face.  They are meant to be eaten 1-2 a serving, not six.  Ugh.  Check out these articles for more information on the relationship between sleep and hunger https://bit.ly/2wg4oBk  and https://bit.ly/2vPxJmE

I found myself grazing through the kitchen the entire day and I think I know why.  Not only was I tired, it is probably time for that nasty character that starts with a P and ends with an S to make her 3-day monthly appearance. I read a book that said you should ask yourself what you are truly hungry for, so I asked myself what I was truly hungry for.  Do you know what I heard back?  Peanut Butter.

And to top things off my teenage daughter, Taylor came down with a roaring case of the stomach flu at precisely the time I was planning on walking and lifting weights.  I was quickly faced with a bigger conundrum.  Drew and I was scheduled to leave for a very special once a year event I blogged about the other day, Surfers Healing, in the morning so I would either need to cancel our plans or leave my sick 15-year-old daughter at home alone until her Dad made it home from his business trip. Don’t you hate it when there isn’t a perfect answer?

When I finally climbed into bed absolutely exhausted and fell into a deep sleep,  Drew woke me up minutes later crying because he was so excited to go to Surfer’s Healing he couldn’t sleep! He was awake for a few hours when I finally fell back asleep even though he was still awake and upset.  I’m not a terrible Mom,  I’m just a terrible sleepless person.

So, almighty scale I really didn’t do anything right yesterday, but I could have done worse and back in the day I would have washed down a few cocktails or ate a lot of chocolate or ice cream to self-medicate, so I have to give myself some credit.

I gained a pound.

I wish I had something wonderful and motivating to wrap this blog up with but I don’t, so I’m going to borrow from Annie again.

The Sun will come out tomorrow

Tomorrow is Another Weight Loss Day

 

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My Perfect Weight Loss Day

“Whatever The Mind Can Conceive and Believe, The Mind Can Achieve.” – Napolean Hill

 

What makes the perfect weight loss day?

I awake with that crazy Charlie Horse from The Pursuit of Ketosis Day 2 and The Pursuit of Ketosis Day 3.  This time I have strange feelings of pride and adoration towards the pain.  I made it to yoga yesterday and my muscles are reacting and sore. As I get out of the bed and move towards the almighty scale, I think about yesterday’s blog One Perfect Day and the questions I asked you.  What if you had one perfect weight loss day?  What would it look like? What would you do? What would you eat? What type of exercise would you partake in? And most importantly how would you feel?
I gave the questions some thought.  I would start my day with meditation and prayer.  While writing my blog I would sip bone broth.  I would attend a yoga class at the studio and somehow control my adrenaline and stay calm throughout the day.  I would eat my new favorite high protein low carb foods, dessert, and of course, peanut butter and absolutely no gluten.

This funny thing happened after I daydreamed about the perfect day.  Things just kind of started coming together.  I almost always wake up to meditation and prayer so that part was easy, but the yoga piece was interesting.  I have been putting off joining the studio because of its schedule and my kids’ summer schedules just don’t jive and it’s pricey.  August is always a bit tough on the finances with two kids needing school clothes, school supplies, sports fees, Drew’s birthday, and Surfers Healing.  I was clicking around on the internet and a one month unlimited special popped up for less than ½ price and then I found an additional 20% off. When I went in to tell my Husband how excited I was, he asked, “Why not go today?”.  So, after three months of “trying” to make it to yoga, I finally made it to my mat.

Yoga for Weightloss

I must interrupt this perfect day with a confession.  I’ve been cheating on my diet again.  This time, I’ve been researching three different diets, not just The South Beach Diet Super Charged.  This is crazy because I am normally loyal to a fault, but I just feel like there is something missing from the clinic’s high protein low carb diet.

The food piece pretty much fell into place as well. I was coming back from yoga and wondering what was for lunch when I decided to stop at the grocery store and get one of my all-time low carb diet favorite foods Caulipower Pizza. – Yum.

Low Carb Cauliflower Pizza

 

When dinner time came around our family was going in several different directions because of sports meetings and therapy appointments so Taylor and I decided to grab dinner out.  We went back to this new restaurant with great gluten-free options and had a fantastic dinner.

Delicious Low Carb Meal

All this talk about my perfect day, I almost forgot to get on the almighty scale. I lost an ounce and I’ll take it.

 

I wonder, if we took a few minutes to think about our perfect day every morning, would we have more perfect days?  What do you think?  Want to give it a try?

Perfect Day

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Are Your Fitness & Weight Loss Goals Bigger Than Your Excuses?

I awoke around 7 AM with the same splitting headache I had last night and started to make my way towards the scale but stopped mid-route and took a moment for gratitude.  I need to thank you for reading my blogs and all the support you have shown throughout this journey.  The Facebook messages, blog messages, texts, and emails have all been amazing.  Since I am working towards growing my followers, I appreciate every single time you have shared my blog or my page and every time you will hit share in the future.

When I made it to the bathroom I hit the play button on my playlist so I could dance around while I dry brushed myself and guess what song came on?  Super Freak by Rick James.  My playlist knows me well.

I stepped up to the almighty scale, not sure of the outcome.  We went out for a late hibachi dinner last night to celebrate my Son’s therapist going away to college.  I feel I made healthy choices but eating after 7 is always a dangerous thing for my weight loss. I had my absolute favorite Caulipower pizza for lunch and the carb count in it is a little higher than I normally eat, so who knows…..

Gluten Induced Headaches

I didn’t get much exercise in during the day because I had a splitting headache.   In all honesty, I’ve been getting more headaches since I’ve been on the clinic’s diet and I’m all but positive I know why.  For several years I suffered from debilitating migraines.  On a whim, I tested for food intolerances and found out I was severely intolerant to gluten.  Within days of going gluten-free, my migraines were completely gone! Although I try to avoid it, the clinic’s diet includes some gluten and the headaches are coming back. So, if I move on to another diet that doesn’t include gluten, would you really consider me a cheater?

Fitness & Weight Loss Goals Bigger Than Your Excuses

I did get a mini work out in last night when I got home from dinner.  The inner Super Freak in me surfaced and I just couldn’t go to bed without exercising so I ran up and down the hallways in my house and lifted weights for a few minutes.  The look on my Husband, Tony’s, face when I do things like this is priceless.  “Wow, I don’t know how you could do that with the headache you have had all day”, Tony said questioningly.  My head was throbbing too hard for me to respond with the typical flirtatious response, so I quickly borrowed a quote from my fitness enthusiast friend, Kimberly Sanderson, “ My goals are bigger than my excuses”.  You can check Kimberly out on Instagram.

I stepped on the almighty scale.  Down 6 ounces since yesterday.  Life is good!

How about your life? How do your goals measure up to your excuses?

Dreams Bigger Than Your Excuses

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I Feel Pretty and like I Lost Sixty Pounds in The Blink of an Eye!

 

“If you change the way you look at things the things you look at change.” – Wayne Dyer

Have you ever seen I Feel Pretty?  I wasn’t overly interested in seeing it, but my teenage daughter, Taylor, asked me to watch it with her the other night and when your teenager wants to spend time with you, you do whatever it takes – right?

I Feel Pretty was hilarious! I highly recommend it. It’s a comedy about a woman who feels insecure and inadequate.  She accidentally falls and awakens believing she is beautiful and invincible!  I’d love to take a fall like that, how about you? I Feel Pretty may be classified in the comedy genre for movies, but it’s deep and very thought-provoking. I love the quote it left us all with:

Change Everything Without Changing Anything

 

I couldn’t help but think about one of my favorite people, motivational speakers, and authors, Dr. Wayne Dyer while I was watching the movie.  His quote, “If you change the way you look at things the things you look at change”, is one of my favorite motivational quotes of all time.  I feel it resonates with the movie and wonder if Dr. Dyer would have enjoyed I Feel Pretty.  He always seemed to have such a great sense of humor.

I decided to take these two awesome quotes and brainstorm.  Hmm, if I am ever “lucky” enough to fall and wake up beautiful and invincible what would happen?  How would the way I look at things change? Would I…

Consider the scale to be my friend and welcome its daily feedback?

Decide those incredibly fit unapproachable girls at the gym are standing around hoping I would take to them not laughing at me?

Be thankful for the days I don’t indulge in a cocktail and think of it as giving my body the chance to detoxify.

Look at myself as if I’m already thin?

Stop calling my diet a diet and start calling it a healthy eating plan?

Be thankful that I am blessed enough to be able to eat healthy high protein food?

Think that exercise is a way of maintaining my beautiful body image and self- care instead of something I have to do to lose weight?

Take a full model like spin when a friend compliments my dress instead of wondering if she’s just being nice?

I wonder…How about you?  What would change for you?

But don’t worry, as long as you are following me, I can promise you one thing- No bikini contests!

 

 

 

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The Holistic Emergency Tune Up for Inflamation

  “Self -care means giving yourself permission to pause.” – Cecilia Tran

I glance down at the Almighty Scale speechless.  Yesterday was quite a day.  After stepping on to it and having a net gain over the last few days, I knew something wasn’t right with my body.  I felt like something was stuck in me and incredibly bloated.  My legs felt like they were wrapped in rubber bands that had a throbbing headache.  Does this ever happen to you?  Normally, I would have pushed past it and gone on with my day, but there is something about this self- care, self -awareness, journaling journey I’m on that wouldn’t let me.  And oh, by the way, if you are trying to solve a problem and I mean any problem with your body, please journal.  You will be amazed at the discoveries you make!

I decided to cancel the plans I had to attend a baby shower of a dear friend that day and take care of myself.  This was incredibly out of character.  I was raised by a man who didn’t take a single sick day in  29.5 years of employment with one company.  The family mantra was something like, you do what you say you are going to do unless you have a fever in the mid 102 plus range or you are puking, period. Additionally, the party girl – social lite in me just hates to miss a good party.  Because of my journaling and awareness, I knew I had to take care of myself.

When my Husband came into the room, I announced I scheduled a massage.  This was crazy for two reasons.  One, I had just splurged on a high-ticket item for myself yesterday and saying I was going to spend more money pampering myself had to seem overly self-indulgent to him.  The other was, we had a sitter scheduled and it was supposed to be our date afternoon – the couples shower and a boat ride.  He touched my very swollen leg and gave my plans his approval.

I jumped in the tub for a quick Epson salt bath before the massage.  While in the tub, I text my new friend and owner of Ginztonix, an amazing holistic spa.  She suggested I come in for an infrared sauna because they are incredible at detoxing.  So, the day was getting more surreal and I honestly couldn’t remember the last time I did this much self-care in one day.  Once I got there, she suggested I spend some additional time on a MassageEnergy table that was like nothing I’ve ever done.  Her kindness was boundless, and she wrapped up my session with a gift of Pink Himalayan mineral soak and directions to take a bath.

When Tony and I finally got to our date night, I ate shrimp and scallops and drank six glasses of water in two hours.  Then I persuaded him to go for a walk instead of having another beer, and that was most likely my biggest accomplishment of the day!

So, almighty scale, I canceled party plans, shortened my date day, took an Epson salt bath, got a massage, spent time in the infrared sauna, laid on the massage table, and took a Himalayan salt bath.  I would greatly appreciate it if you showed me some mercy when I step on you.

And she did – down 2 pounds!  More importantly, the swelling is about 80% better.

What are you doing to pamper yourself today?

Weight Loss Tune-Up